Thursday 10th April 2025   

Welcome to your weekly injection of local and national pharmacy news. As always, if you have any feedback or comments, please contact us by email at admin@cpdevon.org.uk.

Steve Darling, Member of Parliament for Torbay, visited Day Lewis in Southover last week to meet with pharmacy staff and discuss how local pharmacies are helping to provide accessible healthcare services to the community.

During the visit, Steve spoke to pharmacists about the challenges they face on an everyday basis, and heard firsthand about the value of community pharmacies in Torquay, as well as their potential to do even more if they are properly supported. Steve and the team discussed a new initiative that is currently being trialled in the area around independent prescribing and deprescribing and how this is helping patients in the area. They discussed how this may look in the future and how the understanding of what a “bricks and Mortar pharmacy” should and could look like.

As part of its 10-Year Plan for the NHS, the Government wants to shift healthcare services closer to the community, and Steve believes this should include an increased role for community pharmacies.

The pharmacy team explained the range of services on offer in local community pharmacies, such as the NHS Hypertension Service. Importantly, pharmacies are often located in some of the more deprived communities, serving as a crucial lifeline for those who may otherwise struggle to access health advice. Martin Cappell Pharmacist gave a great overview of how just that morning he had helped save a patient who had extremely high blood pressure. This is only one of the patients they have seen and have helped.

The team also explained how pharmacies are currently struggling with a range of pressures – including funding issues, medicine supply challenges and workload pressures.

Steve Darling MP, said: “Community pharmacies like Southover are the backbone of our local healthcare system. They are at the heart of our communities, working very hard to provide an invaluable local service that so many people rely on. From offering expert advice and life-saving medications to delivering vaccinations and helping manage long-term conditions, their role is essential.

“They provide vital services that help alleviate pressure on GPs and hospitals, ensuring that residents have access to trusted expert advice and essential medications close to home. Pharmacies have immense potential to play an even greater role in healthcare delivery: supporting and building on this is key to creating an NHS that is fit for the future, moving healthcare back into communities, and preventing illness. The skill mix that community pharmacies like this bring to neighbourhoods is pivotal to the future of the NHS”

Leah Wolf, Services Lead at Community Pharmacy Devon, said: “We are grateful for Steve’s visit and his recognition of the hard work being done in community pharmacies every day. Pharmacies are under huge pressures at the moment, but with the right support and investment, we can do even more to improve healthcare accessibility and patient outcomes. Our wide range of services, from providing urgent care to managing minor ailments and supporting public health initiatives, demonstrates just how vital pharmacies are to the health of our communities.”

Pilot of clopidogrel & CYP2C19 genotyping for patients with new stroke/TIA

Following a positive NICE opinion for CYP2C19 genotyping for clopidogrel in stroke/TIA, a national pilot has commenced in 4 English centres, including Royal Devon University Healthcare. Clopidogrel is a pro-drug, metabolised to its active form predominantly by CYP2C19. Around a quarter of the population carry a genetic variant which reduces conversion to the active metabolite and are at risk of further events, due to ineffective antiplatelet treatment.

The pilot will run until May 2025 and will consider both genomic laboratory-based testing and point of care tests. It will deliver an implementation guide for providers and provide data to inform future commissioning plans.

Patients identified as having CYP2C19 genetic variants will be prescribed an alternative antiplatelet therapy by the RDUH stroke team. There is no action required from community pharmacists in the surrounding locality, but it is important to be aware of developments in this area. GPs in the locality have also been updated on the pilot project.

Find out more here; Spotlight: Clopidogrel pilot project :: North West Genomics Medicine Service Alliance.

Did you know that you are able to do (and claim for) a minor illness consultation for adults with Otitis Media? Or that if you see a 3-year old child in pharmacy with a sore throat, despite them being too young to meet the criteria for a clinical pathway consultation, you can also still do, (and claim for), a minor illness consultation.

The most common myths and queries surrounding Pharmacy First have been put into a factsheet on our website that you can view here.

If you have a positive news story to share with us please send it to admin@cpdevon.org.uk and it will be featured in an upcoming edition of the review. If featured, you will also win a surprise gift for you and your team up to the value of £25!

Click the name you need to email them directly: